


Monster

by DrChickenSlinger



Category: Naruto
Genre: GaaLee, LeeGaa, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-24
Updated: 2019-04-24
Packaged: 2020-01-31 09:43:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,651
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18588694
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DrChickenSlinger/pseuds/DrChickenSlinger
Summary: Even after he has improved, Gaara is still accused of being a monster. Luckily, he has Lee to remind him of who he really is.





	Monster

**Author's Note:**

> *dab* This is kinda random, but it’s been sitting in my ideas so I figured I would clear it out. Thanks for reading!

Lee walked down the streets of Suna, hand in hand with the Kazekage. He had recently begun courting Gaara after the relationship had been approved by Suna’s council and was visiting for a week. He carried a small paper bag of dried figs, Gaara reaching in to take one from time to time. Up ahead walked Kankuro and Temari, browsing the various shops and laughing together. Every once in a while they would turn to Gaara and Lee, cracking a joke or pointing out an interesting store. It was the perfect day. 

Until they bumped into a shinobi walking down the street. 

“Oh! My sincerest apologies!” Lee said, bowing low after helping the man back to his feet. “Please, take one of our dried figs! They are delicious and very good for you!”

The man’s eyes sharpened as he looked at Lee. He pushed the bag out of his hand, spilling their treat onto the ground. 

“I don’t want this shit. Just watch where you’re going next time.”

Lee’s face turned a bright red. He mumbled another apology and dropped to his knees, picking up the fruit from the ground. Temari and Kankuro turned back, on guard but still just observing. The man’s headband indicated that he was from Iwagakure. Doing something about the situation could cause an intervillage crisis if they weren’t careful. Lee rose from the ground, grabbed Gaara’s hand, and turned to continue walking. But Gaara didn’t budge. 

“That was a very rude thing for you to do,” he said, stepping towards the man and crossing his arms. Lee tried to interrupt, but Gaara silenced him with his hand. 

“Who the fuck are you?” the shinobi asked, spitting on the ground at Gaara’s feet. The crowd that had surrounded them as they walked stood still, eyes wide as they stared at the man as he disrespected their Kazekage.

“He,” Temari spat back, pushing past Kankuro to the front of the crowd, “is the Kazekage of Suna. You would do well to watch your tone and where you’re going next time.”

Temari began to unhook her fan, but Gaara put his hand out, stopping her in her tracks.

“Temari, please don’t. It isn’t worth our time,” he said quietly, his eyes never leaving the foreign ninja.

“The Kazekage, huh? The monster child that killed his bitch of a mother? You’re -hic- nothing but a sissy now I heard. Got yourself a little boyfriend, huh?”

 

A thump was heard behind them, Kankuro unloading his puppet scroll at the sound of the insult to his mother. He began forming his hand signs, but was abruptly stopped by a sharp look from Gaara. He mumbled a curse under his breath, annoyed that his little brother had so much power over him. He didn’t like to use it often, but it wasn’t hard to get Kankuro to obey him. Both he and Temari were devoted to the village and their little brother in all capacities, as frustrating as that might be sometimes.

Gaara turned back towards the man, his expression smoothing as he stepped closer, the smell of alcohol burning his nostrils. He wrinkled his nose as he did so, staring up at the man who glared right back. He had worked so hard to retain his composure in situations such as these. His first meeting as Kazekage had frustrated him so much, he broke a window with his sand. But he wasn’t like that anymore.

“You may think what you wish, but you are not allowed to treat my partner or the citizens of Suna in this manner. As for my mother, she sacrificed her life for me and this village. I will not stand for such talk of the woman who gave me my life, though it may be damaged. Please behave yourself or I will have you removed from the village.”

“Fine, have it your way. But like I said, you are nothing but a monster. It would do your ‘citizens’ a lot of good to realize that and get rid of you once and for all. Maybe have that pretty sister of yours take charge.” The man took a swig out of the bottle he had been carrying. He turned to walk away, all of the people on the street watching as he left. The street was dead silent, until a throat was cleared. 

“Excuse me,” Lee said, stepping past Gaara and towards the man. He turned around, swaying slightly, and stared at Lee, pulling a short blade out from the holster on his back.

“Kid, leave me alone, I told you I want nothing to do with you or that sorry excuse for a Kage you have behind you. If you don’t shut up, you’re going to regret it.”

“I would like to see you try to do something,” Lee said, standing in front of Gaara with his hand raised. The man growled in frustration, raised his blade, and charged toward Lee. As his hand brought the sharp edge of the sword down towards him, Lee grabbed his hand, twisting the man’s arm until it was behind his back, pushing it until the man gasped.

“I normally do not like to resolve things with violence if I do not have to. But it seems that you are not willing to listen,” Lee said, his eyebrows drawn down fiercely. Gaara stepped behind him, placing a hand on his shoulder. Lee looked back to him and, seeing Gaara’s expression, sighed. He pressed the man’s arm a bit harder, then turned him back around pushing him to the ground.

“The fact that Gaara does not want to see you harmed is proof of how different he actually is rather than how you see him. I would say that you are the monster here, but monsters fight back. You are just a coward.”

The man stumbled to his feet, staring at Lee the entire time. “How could you love something like that? Do you know how many people he has killed in cold blood? His body count was higher when he was twelve than mine is now. What kind of a freak are you?”

“I am no freak,” Lee said, standing to his full height. “I am the beautiful green beast of Konoha, Rock Lee, and partner of Gaara, the Kazekage of Suna. I love him because of who he now is, for his strength and dignity, for the ugly past he has chosen to shed. It is true that he has killed in the past, but that is the life of a shinobi. To try and find someone who hasn’t made mistakes, whether those similar to Gaara’s or not, is to live a life of misery. I have chosen to love him despite his flaws, just as the citizens of Suna have.”

As Lee finished his speech, two anbu came and grabbed the man, pulling him away from where Lee and Gaara stood. Lee’s face flushed a bright red as the crowd around them nodded their approval, a few clapping him on the shoulder as they walked by, continuing with their day. For Suna, this was the highest amount of praise they usually gave. Lee was honored.

“Lee,” Gaara said, walking up to him. “I-”

“I am so sorry, Gaara, I hope I did not embarrass you. I know you wanted to handle it yourself, but I could no longer take the terrible things he was saying to you. It does not matter in the long run, because I know what the people truly think of you, but-”

Gaara pressed two thin fingers to Lee’s lips causing his blush to deepen.

“Lee, breathe. It’s okay. Thank you for what you said. I don’t know that I am deserving of the love and forgiveness that you have shown me, but I will do my best to live up to the man you say that I am.”

Lee’s protests were interrupted when Gaara wrapped his arms around his neck. Lee sighed and pulled Gaara’s middle closer to him, holding him and feeling like he had been made whole, not for the first time since they had met. They stood for a moment, but it ended abruptly when Kankuro wrapped his arms around them, attempting to pick them up.

“Holy shit,” he grunted, his back cracking as he pulled. “How much do you weigh, Lee?”

“Well, a lot more with my leg weights,” he answered with a laugh. Temari grabbed Kankuro, pulling him back down the street they had been exploring. Gaara grabbed Lee’s hand, interlacing their fingers and pulling him gently in the direction of his siblings. They walked quietly down the street for a few minutes before Gaara interrupted the silence.

“You know, I could have easily killed that man. Especially seeing as he was inebriated. Had I met him a few years earlier, I would have killed him. I think the only drunk person I could never kill would be you, Lee.”

Lee laughed lightly, leaning down to press a kiss to Gaara’s cheek. “I know you could have, Gaara. Though I am glad you did not, I must admit, you look very attractive when you are using your sand jutsu.”

Gaara smiled lightly up at Lee, bumping his hip into him as they walked. He stepped into him, wrapping his free arm around Lee’s bicep, pulling him as close as they could get. Though Gaara still felt like a monster from time to time, Lee would always be there to remind him of who he truly was, even if it was Gaara’s own insecurities telling him he wasn’t any good. And because Lee was the most pure and honest person he knew, he couldn’t help but start to believe in his own goodness. Lee was infectious in that way, never allowing Gaara to think less of himself than he did. 

Gaara was just glad that Lee wasn’t afraid of monsters.


End file.
